Karsman scores 4 goals to lead Sewickley Academy past Bentworth
McMURRAY – Bentworth girls soccer coach Tyler Hamstra put it pretty simply when describing the performance of Sewickley Academy’s Claire Karsman.
“Karsman just had an amazing game,” Bentworth coach Tyler Hamstra said. “The best player on the field tonight was wearing a different color than us.”
It was a special night for the sophomore forward and it came at the Bearcats’ expense.
Karsman had all four goals for top-seeded Sewickley Academy in a 4-1 win over No. 5 Bentworth in the WPIAL Class A girls soccer semifinals Tuesday night at Peters Township Middle School.
Sewickley Academy improved to 18-0 and advanced to play the winner of Tuesday’s late game between Riverview and Winchester Thurston in the championship at F.N.B. Stadium at a date and time to be announced. Bentworth (17-3) will play the loser in the consolation game Thursday with the winner advancing to the state tournament.
“The girls have been talking about getting back to (the WPIAL final) since June,” Sewickley Academy coach Gary Weber said. “They have been focused on this and have been locked into what their goals are and how they can accomplish them. They’ve got themselves back there and now we’ll see what happens.
“I felt the girls were a little hungrier tonight. We didn’t play well last week (in a 1-0 win over Carlynton in the quarterfinals), but they refocused and played really well tonight. I can’t really say enough about how well they played.”
It was a rematch of last year’s WPIAL Class A final, which Bentworth won 1-0.
Tuesday’s game started very similar to last year’s final, with a Brielle Dillon goal.
Last year, Dillon’s goal, albeit much later in the match, held up and Bentworth went on to celebrate a WPIAL title.
During Tuesday’s semifinal, Bentworth’s lead lasted two minutes.
Dillon scored in the 17th minute when Bella Moyer served in a perfect corner kick into the middle of the box that she got a clean header on and put it in the back of the net.
Sewickley Academy struck right back, however.
Karsman took a touch in the 18-yard box and got enough space to rip a shot into the goal from 10 yards to tie it at 1-1.
“That was key for them,” Hamstra said. “If they didn’t answer back quickly things could’ve been a bit different, so you have to give them a lot of credit for that.”
Then, in the 32nd minute, Karsman struck again, this time off a corner kick.
The ball was initially defended by Bentworth, but it came to Karsman and she ripped a shot from just inside the 18-yard box into the top of the goal.
Sewickley Academy kept the pressure on for the rest of the first half, but Bentworth keeper Julia Brandau was up to the task.
She made eight saves in the first half, including a couple from close range that kept Bentworth within striking distance.
Bentworth fell behind Shady Side Academy before rallying to win 3-2 last Thursday in the quarterfinals, but couldn’t replicate that magic on Tuesday.
Karsman completed her hat trick with a goal in the 62nd minute and added her fourth one with 16 minutes remaining to put the game to bed.
“She just took over the game tonight,” Weber said of Karsman. “That was a special performance. She’s a special player. To score goals like she did tonight…it was fun to watch. It’s always enjoyable to watch a player put in a performance like that.”
Though Bentworth will not defend its WPIAL title, it still has a shot at qualifying for the state tournament. And after being upset in the first round of states last year, there’s some unfinished business there for the Bearcats.
“It’s a quick turnaround and that’s always challenging,” Hamstra said. “The consolation game is something we haven’t been successful in yet, so we need to put this out of our memory and go out there and see if we can extend our season.”